There are two common problems that hold anglers back more than anything else: an aversion to tying knots and a resistance to wading. While successful knot tying is about practice and repetition, confident wading is both an acquired skill and one that you prepare for....
The best fishing trips begin with a walk. When our boot laces are tied and the wader straps are buckled, a journey into the morning fog of the canyon begins. A good walk streamside clears the mind, releasing anxieties and the questions of a life left back at the truck...
The first time I carried a wading staff, I was on a trip to the Youghiogheny River in western PA. With its big gnarly rocks, heavy currents and unpredictable footing, the wading situation on this deep and wide river is never easy and often precarious. While traveling...
Seems to me, the last piece of gear many anglers think of is the wading belt. Often seen as an add-on, an accessory, or even unnecessary, some guys will tell you to tie a rope around your waist and be done with it. The wading belt provided with your new pair of waders...
The trouble with cheaper lines is threefold. Their breaking strength is inferior to the fly shop brands, they’re usually a bit stiffer, and the manufactured diameters only go down to about 4X — usually.
Then a couple of years ago I bought Seaguar Finesse. It was hard to track down when it first came out, because here was a line sold in smaller quantities, with a higher than expected price tag (for the gear guys). But to fly anglers, the 150 yard spool for about $20 was a steal. Easy decision. I bought it immediately, based on Seaguar’s own description and the specs.
Since then, Seaguar Finesse has become my go to fluoro tippet material from 2X to 5X, and a few of my Troutbitten friends do the same. It’s thinner, but stronger per diameter, and is indeed more flexible as described. (It has some finesse.) It’s as almost as good as some fly shop brands and better than many others. And because the type of tippet we use is not what catches trout, I don’t overspend on tippet . . .
My ten-year-old son stumbled across the river. With each step he seemed on the brink of falling forward into the flow. Wide eyed and stiff-faced, Joey battled through the current, expecting all the while to fall in, but hoping and struggling against it. It seemed like he was trying to win a race, thinking he might outdistance the impending accident if he just moved fast enough . . .
Nothing in nature crosses the water like a fisherman in a hurry. We look so out of place, bumbling around in waders trying to find a foothold and fighting a battle with the river . . .
Bar boots provide amazing traction in most rivers, and they save the wear on your boot soles. This updated version of the do-it-yourself Bar Boots Troutbitten article contains a few more details that I've learned in the last two years. Read Here: DIY - Bar Boots Read...
I burn through boot soles fast. And cheap boots with poor foot support are a bad idea when you're wading heavy runs and putting full days on the water with lots of hiking, so I was spending about $150 every ten months on a new pair of boots. I used to resole my own...